CHOOSING THANKFULNESS

Expressing thankfulness each day enlivens your life.

My first experience of Thanksgiving as a twenty-two year old immigrant to the USA was filled with amazement at this holiday! Beyond the pumpkin pies it offered me an invitation. Could the spirit of the holiday be incorporated into my everyday life and what would that mean?

I could have chosen to focus only on joy of this new holiday experience but instead also chose to become mindful about embracing a thankful way of life.

Years later it has become part of the rhythm of my life to begin each day with expectant gratitude for a person with whom I will talk or meet. At the close of each day I offer thanks for at least one person and experience of the day.

The result is that Thanksgiving has become more than my favorite holiday – it is a choice about how to live. In the more difficult times its gift is even more radiant. Thankfulness reminds me of my oneness with others creating wonder about our interconnectedness.

Call-to-Action:

In your daily life:

Choose to be thankful

Begin and end each day with a practice of thankfulness

Be aware of opportunities for thankfulness for others, nature and life itself

Notice how your mindful choice to live a life of thanksgiving enlivens you and others.